The Headless Horseman in London

Read this in — Svenska

You have made two new acquaintances in an online ghost hunter forum. They have found an old journal and are trying to solve the mysterious disappearance of its owner. Teacher Ichabod Crane’s two-hundred-year-old notes contain descriptions of a headless horseman and what seems to be a curse plaguing London. Maybe the journal offers the clues needed to find out what happened to Ichabod?

You are invited to join an investigation, which starts at Chalk Farm tube station. Your new friends have mapped out the locations of relevance in Ichabod’s life, and you plan to follow all the leads the journal provides. But, one of the people you were supposed to meet never shows up at the agreed location…

Go on a ghost tour and solve a mystery

Walk in Ichabod Crane’s footsteps through Primrose Hill and Camden. Participate in the story in each location through gamification. Control conversations between characters, examine mysterious items and crack secret codes while you explore the city’s historical surroundings. Your companion will tell you everything he knows about the journal and the Headless Horseman as you walk.

Will you be able to reveal why Ichabod disappeared, and find your friend?

The StoryTourist app will show you the way

To walk this tour, you’ll download the user-friendly StoryTourist app. The app is equipped with a map, GPS, a narrator and digital guide which makes sure you walk in the right direction. Once you have purchased the tour it is yours to keep. You can use it at any time and as many times as you wish.

Through the StoryTourist-app, you’ll hear the story of how the headless horseman haunted London. The only thing you need to be able to explore the city in a brand-new way is a smartphone with headphones.

This self-guided city exploration game is an adaptation of Washington Irving’s short story The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. You will find practical information about the tour under the “instructions” tab.

Read this in — Svenska

How this tour works:

Your smartphone is your guide on this tour! Once you have purchased a tour, this is what you do:

Download the StoryTourist app from Apple App Store or Google Play, while connected to Wi-Fi.
Log into the app using the same email address you filled in when purchasing the tour. You will create your password the first time you log into the app. The tour you have purchased will be ready to download in the tour library once you have logged in. Make sure you are still connected to Wi-Fi while downloading the tour.
Go to the starting point of the tour, open the app, put your headphones on and head out on your StoryTour adventure!

Important information:

This is a location based experience. You have to be at the tour starting point at the Chalk Farm tube station in London, to start this walking tour.
Once the tour is downloaded to your phone, you can use it offline.
There is a map, GPS and a digital guide in the app, making sure that you’ll walk the right way.
This tour is available in English and Swedish.
Once you have purchased the tour, it is your to keep. You can use it whenever you want and as many times as you would like. You can start, pause and end the tour whenever you would like.
This tour is pet friendly – feel free to bring your dog on this walk!
Public transport is available close to both the tour start point and end point.
This tour is not accessible with a wheel chair due to stairs.
We recommend participants to be 15 years old or over, due to the dark theme of the tour.

What to bring:

Your smartphone, with the StoryTourist app and the tour you purchased already downloaded.
Headphones, for the best possible listening experience
Make sure that your smartphone battery is fully charged. If you know that your phone has poor battery capacity, it can be a good idea to bring a powerbank as well.

Chalk Farm tube station

The Chalk Farm area was originally known as the Manor of Rugmere, an estate referenced in writing as far back as 1086. A part of it was purchased by King Henry VIII in the 1500’s.

Ichabod's home

You are now in the Primrose Hill area. It was built as a London suburb in the early- to mid-1800’s, on the fields below the hill itself. Primrose Hill also borders Regent's canal.

Ichabod's school

The families living in the Primrose Hill area in the 1800’s were described by a contemporary sociologist as “lower middle class to upper middle and upper class".

Primrose Hill park

The Primrose Hill park was part of King Henry VIII’s hunting grounds area in the 1500’s. The hill was “swallowed” by London as the city expanded and in the 1800’s it became a public park.

The Princess of Wales pub

You are standing outside The Princess of Wales pub, thought to have been named for the wedding of Princess Alexandra to Edward VII. Locals called the pub “the ess’s” for a long time.

Regent's Canal towpath

The little black door to your left is an access point to the Camden catacombs - an underground system of tunnels used as stables for horses that pulled railway wagons in the 1800’s.

The Arlington House

Arlington House is the only building left in the Rowton chain of hostels for working men. George Orwell stayed in one of them in the 1930’s when he wrote Down and Out in Paris and London.

The World's End pub

This pub is said to be haunted by Mother Damnable, a woman who the locals believed was a witch, and who lived in a hut in the same location as where The World’s End stands today.

Trinity Church Camden

The Trinity United Reformed Church was first known as the Ebenezer Chapel in the 1800’s, and has been repaired, rebuilt and renamed several times throughout the years.

The Elephant's Head pub

You can find several elephants in Camden if you know where to look. There is also the Elephant House, the former Elephant’s row, and of course the Camden borough coat of arms.